The Thorns of Life
by MujakiRising
Summary: Layla goes to Sky High, where she runs into a lot more than an education. Yes, I am still alive. Expect another chapter soon.
1. It was morning

The Thorns of Life

By: me

Disclaimer: This is me not owning any of it…

Summary: I saw the movie a long while back with a friend. She was disappointed with it, but I wasn't really listening to her (ouch, what did I say, Michiko? It's the truth…). So, anyway, she randomly started talking about it the other day and the proceeded to challenge me to write this. We (cough-she-cough) decided that it would be about Layla. I don't know the pairing yet, but she wants it to be Warren. So yeah… be forewarned of some serious OOCness and the fact it will be different… deal with it.

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Chapter One

(This is the intro part. If you don't want to read, scroll down to next part)

(Michiko wrote this by the way)

ahem takes on announcer voice…

It was definitely not an average day for the Rosewood household, yet one couldn't tell by the outside. The house was in a nice suburban neighborhood, complete with a garage and stone walk-up to the front door. It was designed with a red-bricked front along with many plants littering the yard; one could only guess how jealous the neighbors were. Even when meeting the occupants, one would not suspect a thing; they seem natural and normal. A mother raising a daughter, working jobs, paying bills, gardening; it all seems like a normal life. But then again, that family never knew a normal life. They had powers. Unlike the powers read about to children as they lay nestled in their beds, these powers were real and came with a price tag. To many, it was a price too high.

The morning marked the first day of school for the daughter, Layla. Her power is that of controlling nature's plant life. Differing from many other children, she had not inherited her mother's power of talking to animals. However, not many dwell upon the topic and concentrate on bigger and more pressing issues. Now of the proper age, Layla's mother agreed to send her daughter to the famed "Sky High" that she had attended years before. The school was created for children like Layla; it helps them to harness their power(s) and teaches them to fight criminals as heroes and sidekicks … or hero-support as Layla calls them. That's Layla, though; she's not too into labels or social classification based on things that they have no control over. It all started a long time ago… but that's a story for later (I plan to have this pop up in the story sometime).

Luckily for her, she had someone to talk to about her opinions with. Not wanting to bother her mother with what she knew her mother would label "teenage angst" or a "cute phase of rebellion," she talked to her best friend, Will Stronghold. If asked, she could go on forever about him. He was the son of the two greatest heroes of the time: The Commander (Steve Stronghold) and Jetstream (Josie Stronghold). However, Layla saw him as more than that. He was nice to her, stood with her through the tough times, and she had the biggest crush on him. Naturally, she still had feelings for him; she was just waiting for him to take the hint and make a move of some kind. In fear of flat-out rejection which would crush her heart and their friendship, Layla didn't say anything.

The rays of the early morning sun shone through a window beside a bed in a small room. It was a beautiful morning with the whole birds chirping thing going on too. But, the silence was ultimately broken-

"Beep! Beep! Be-"

The sound of an alarm clock was abruptly cut short by a hand emerging from a pile of blankets and pillows on the bed. Around the bed, the room was fairly clean, for a teen-aged girl; colored with earth-tones and an apparent garden theme. A dresser was close by the bed with music boxes crowded upon it with a mirror somehow finding room to fit. Along the walls was plant-like and nature decorations varying from actual plants to beautiful stones to sea shells. Following the hand emerged a head poking out of the covers.

With a yawn, the room's occupant sat up and stretched her petite, slim body. The girl, Layla, sixteen years old, ran her fingers through her dark red hair as she shot a glare at the alarm clock with fiery green eyes. She let out a small growl thinking back to her interrupted dream.

"Why did you have to wake me up then? I was having a great dream…" she trailed off with a sigh, forgetting her anger. Closing her eyes, all she could remember of the dream was a pair of dark, intense eyes boring into her very soul.

Outside her window, looking into the fenced yard, a tree was growing at an alarming rate. One of its branches crept in through an opened window. A blossom grew to an apple, falling off the branch, ripe, onto her outstretched hand. '_Yum. Breakfast,'_ she thought to herself, taking a bite. Finally choosing to get up, she wiped her lips and made her way to the closet.

As she walked down a softly creaking stairway, she sighed once again, passing the pictures hanging on the wall. The pictures were of a happy family. She and her mom looked obviously younger and were joined with a mysterious man. There were pictures of them on a beach, in a park, and finally outside of the house proudly holding up a sold sign. Yet, in all of the pictures, the man seemed to always have his face just out of the picture, behind something, or blurred from movement.

The stairs ended near the front door, but she turned right, towards the kitchen, looking around. She was met with silence in the room. Giving a quick glance to the clock, she then gave a once-over around the room. '_She's probably talking to the neighbor's dog right about now…'_

"Layla," a voice from the back of the house called out. Looking toward its direction, she made no movement towards it.

Instead, she started up some sort of search. She looked on the table, on the chairs, and on the counter, but couldn't find the prize. The newspaper.

"Layla Rosewood!" The voice shouted out, much stronger.

Giving up her search, Layla made her way to the house's rear. When she made it outside, she saw her mother standing up from a crouched position beside the fence. The tall woman in her early thirties brushed off her black jeans and motioned her to come closer. She gave her daughter a hard stare with dark eyes through a pair of off-balanced glasses.

"The robins tell me you've been using your power again," she started, her hands on her hips.

"And I suppose they spelled it out in the air with twigs, saving you the effort of using your own power?" Layla sarcastically interjected.

Her mother seemed as if she wanted to say something, but held her tongue a moment longer. "I suppose I can forgive you on your first day of school. After all, you'll need all the practice you can get to be a hero."

Layla stayed quiet.

"With your power, though, I would think they might put you in hero class anyway."

"Mom-"

"But I guess it is all too possible you'll be a sidekick." She paused. "After all, I was one too. At least I won't have to worry about your grades that way. I mean, you should already know everything you'd need to for those classes."

"Mom… you know I don't-"

"Sky High… it's been such a long time since I've been there." Her eyes became distant, as if recalling a long past memory.

"Mom!" Layla raised her voice, gaining her mother's attention, snapping her out of her reflective daze.

"What?"

"If I don't go now, I'll be late for my first day."

"That would make you stand out some. Someone important might notice you if you walk in after everyone's already there."

"Mother!" Layla ground out, making her mother laugh.

"Jeez, can't you take a joke?" Her mother said, even though it was not a joke at all.

Without another word, Layla turned on her heel and left, grumbling all the way. Her mother's gaze followed her into the house before she was distracted by geese flying overhead asking to stop for food.

Reaching her bus stop, she only saw two other people there: a guy wearing a black leather jacket who was being annoyed by a preppy jock (no offense to jocks) wanting attention and someone to listen to him. Not wanting to stick around and see what happened, or see if the jock would bother her too, Layla started walking again in the direction of Will's house, not catching that the boy in the leather jacket turned to see her leave.

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Author's stuff: So… this is my first story on fanfiction… ever… The last story I can remember writing was back in middle school (long time ago) about being turned into a hamster, getting me locked in the school, and having to survive until I changed back… I'm not too good in the imagination department, so any comments or suggestions would really help me out for future chapters and their writing styles.

What I'm trying to say is please review and tell me if I should continue or not (ouch! Michiko, stop hitting me!)

I'll try to update when I can.

Bye-bye for now… 안녕, 再见, さようなら, مع السلام, adeus, arrivederci, au revoir, adios, and Auf Wiedersehen.

I can only hope the different fonts showed up right.


	2. It all began to change

The Thorns of Life

Chapter 2

Disclaimer: This is me not owning any of it…

Summary: So, you all know by now this was a challenge. Therefore, only half belongs to me; half belongs to Michiko, my editor and the person who tells (coughscreamsatcough) me if she wants something changed in the story. (ouch! what? it's the truth…) You've met the family and household, but now… on to the Strongholds. Yeah… anyway… here it is now… seriously, it's beginning.

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Chapter Two

Ever since she was twelve years old, when she was forced to go through some hard times, she was allowed to come in the house randomly whenever she wanted. That also came to mean when ever she wanted, also. As she entered the house, Layla smelled what she knew to be Mrs. Stronghold's cooking. Not hearing a large amount of noise in the kitchen, she guessed that Will was not downstairs yet, after all, Will loved his sleep. Making her way back to the large kitchen, she saw that she was correct. Mrs. Stronghold was standing before a stove top frying up eggs, bacon, and sausage. The older woman was beautiful with a nice figure, probably due to her workouts from saving the world often, shoulder-length auburn hair, and glasses. The glasses, of course, were a part of her secret disguise, for most heroes (mostly the successful ones) had secret identities.

"Good morning, Layla," Mrs. Stronghold greeted, strangely similar to the Stepford wives.

"Good morning," Layla replied, walking over to some of the wilting potted plants in the window sill. She passed a hand over the browning stalks and the plants grew with a sigh of new life flowing through them. They bloomed to their peak, blossoms open, and arching, green stalks.

"Would you like some breakfast?" Mrs. Stronghold asked, motioning toward the steaming pots and pans splayed out before her.

"No thank you," Layla answered, finding more plants around the kitchen to help. "Ever since my mom started talking to animals, she's convinced that they don't want to be eaten. I'm pretty sure she'd be able to smell any meat I've eaten coming from over a mile away."

Mrs. Stronghold looked as if she were restraining herself from saying something as her husband happened to walk in. However, he was wearing his mask in place of his secret identity glasses.

"Oh, good morning, Josie," he quipped as he gave his wife a peck on the cheek, grabbing some toast and a plate. "Layla, he greeted, picking up the paper at the table. He didn't seem to notice the mishap, and began to skim the headlines. Trying to tip him off, Layla swiped at her own nose a few times, but he didn't seem to take the hint.

_'That must run in the family.'_ She thought to her self.

"Good morning, Commander," Layla tried at long last, sitting stock straight in her seat and giving him a mock salute.

"What?" he finally asked, looking her way. Confusion was displayed clearly across his face.

"Your glasses, sir." She continued to hold the salute; he finally noticed something was off.

"Oh, right." He felt his face, pulled his glasses out of his pocket, and fixed the problem.

Mrs. Stronghold looked toward the clock and sighed. Turning in the direction of the stairs, she called out to Will, asking that he come down for breakfast. His muffled voice was heard replying, but Layla couldn't clearly hear whatever it was he said.

"What's taking him so long today?" asked Mr. Stronghold from over his newspaper with a piece of toast hanging from his mouth.

"Well, it is the first day of school. Besides, he said something about working out," his wife replied, going back to the stove to turn some of the cooking meat.

"Oh! That's my boy. He must be just a little nervous." With a large smile, he finished eating quickly and stood up. After putting his dishes into the sink, he turned and began his way back out of the kitchen. "I think I'll go get him. That way I can have a talk with him also."

After an awkward moment of silence in the kitchen, Mrs. Stronghold offered Layla a glass of orange juice, which she readily accepted. In return, she squeaked out a simple 'thank you.' It wasn't that Mrs. Stronghold was not a pleasant person or anything; it was just that Layla never felt completely comfortable when alone around her. She felt that she was constantly under surveillance, as if being judged on something.

Following another round of awkward silence between the women, the two walked in. Will looked exhausted, while his dad was extremely happy and beaming with pride. '_I hope Will hasn't been lying again that he has his powers,_' she thought, watching Will's face for any clues. Yes, she knew about his lies. In truth, Will hadn't attained his powers yet, if he were to get any at all. She was concerned when she noticed that he was lying to his parents. He would pretend to have inherited his father's monstrous strength, when he really hadn't. She hadn't wanted him to continue with his lies, but she wasn't willing to risk their friendship to reveal it.

Will's parents fussed over him and of how this would be his first day. They were trying to fill him with advice and tips about the school, as much as they could, that is. He didn't seem to like the attention, but he didn't do anything to make them stop. Layla watched from a short distance, slightly jealous of how his parents were doting upon him. She knew better than to wish for that, though, for Will seemed thoroughly annoyed with his parents' antics. Still, she felt a small chip form on her heart watching the scene before her. Eventually, they ended their fuss and allowed them on their way to the bus stop.

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Walking to the bus stop, the two mostly talked about random topics; what ever came to mind. The conversation sprouted from spur of the moment ideas and spoken thoughts. It turned out that they were the only two students who were at the bus stop. Of course, the bus came only moments later, as if its timing were on a perfect schedule and was never late or something. It looked as though it were a normal school bus. It was large, rectangular, yellow, and windows full of students. Even when the bus' door opened, everything on the inside looked average.

Stepping onto the bus, Will stupidly asked, "Is this the bus to Sky High?" The bus driver immediately became tense, and he began to look around the area.

"Hey," he said. "Do you want to attract all the super villains in the entire area or something?" He asked, looking at Will.

"No, I just"

"What's your name kid?"

"I'm Will Stronghold."

The bus driver's look of anger changed into a look of awe. "Stronghold? You mean to say that you are the Stronghold's kid? Wow, hey everyone, this is Will Stronghold. I'm honored to have you on my bus, kid." He somehow had gotten the entire bus' attention and began going on about Will. Luckily, he let up eventually, and they could begin looking for a seat.

Both of them made their way to the back of the bus when they saw some of their friends: Ethan, Magenta, and Zach. Sitting next to Will, she and the group talked as the bus began again. Then, when the bus driver had pressed a button, the bus suddenly changed. Seat belts came to fasten themselves around the riders, airline wings spurted from the sides of the bus, and the bus took off into the sky. Scared stiff, Layla (along with many other students) screamed until the bus had leveled out.

Up in the sky, Layla saw the school come into view as she looked out the window. It was just a floating campus, looking like nothing was holding it up.

Landing, everyone stumbled out, one student even had kneeled down and kissed the ground. Looking around, Layla noticed other students around the grounds, and observed their powers; one girl with blonde hair had ice as her ability, another one in a cheerleading outfit could multiply, and then she noticed that some of them could even fly.

The group of freshmen walked up to the steps leading to the front doors, only to be blocked by two seniors. One was tall and lanky, identifying himself as Lash, while the other was slightly shorter and more over-weight, identified as Speed. They both claimed that they were friendly and that all freshmen needed to pay a fine to go inside of the school. Some of the freshmen seemed slightly scared of them, while others, including Layla, were more annoyed by them.

That, of course, was when the female senior walked up to the group. Introducing herself as Gwen, Will practically swayed on the spot for her. Layla couldn't help but notice, seeing as she was standing beside him. Noticing that she was paying an unfairly more amount of attention on Will, she couldn't stop the word 'slut' ring out in her mind.

"Let's go inside," she chirped.

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Author's Stuff: Okay, well this was the second chapter of the what-will be long story. Yeah… so... the gym sorting thingie will next appear, be prepared.

Oh, I must say: RedRomance, thank you so much for the kind review! . You're so nice, and I'm working on it.

… then again, I kind of have to, or else Michiko will completely go postal (OoOouch! Now what did I do?).

Bye-bye for now… 안녕, 再见, さようなら, مع السلام, adeus, arrivederci, au revoir, adios, and Auf Wiedersehen.

See the nice looking button? Click it!

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	3. The first day

The Thorns of Life

by: me

Disclaimer: This is me not owning any of it…

Summary: Yay, they are now at the school! Now the sorting is about to begin. Yeah, there still might be continuous OOCness... I think… I'm not sure, because it's been a long while since I've seen the movie. I should rent it soon or something.

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Chapter Three

The freshman class was led into the large gymnasium for what was called the sorting. That was where the students were divided by their powers, either starting the road to become a hero, or the bridge to a sidekick. In respect, it was the gym teacher who was chosen to supervise and administer the sorting. He was a slightly portly large man, wearing the stereotyped workout clothes, a whistle around his neck, and baseball cap. As the students crowded into the room, much talking could be heard and the coach had trouble getting everyone's attention. '_This is stupid._' Layla thought to herself. '_The whole idea of being separated by powers is stupid._' The coach finally got tired of all the talking and yelled. It seemed that his power was in his voice; it reverberated off of the walls, the ceiling, and the floor, creating a ripple effect, blasting everyone's ears. Everyone became quiet. He began calling up the students' one at a time. She watched the kids go up one at a time to show their power, attempting to stop a car from falling on them. She watched the kids smile as they were told they could be a hero, and she watched the kids' faces fall as they were labeled a sidekick.

If she actually decided to try, she knew that she could easily get a spot in the hero class for sure. However, Will wouldn't. He still had no powers. They would then be forced apart from one another because of the whole stupid idea. She bit her lip, trying to sort things out; her gaze stayed on the stage. Realizing that she was next, she made a quick decision.

"Rosewood!" The man belted out. Layla stood up, but she made no move toward the stage. "Well, come on, we don't have all day," he called out, getting impatient.

"I refuse," she called back. Will, who was sitting beside her, looked up in shock.

"What?"

"I refuse to be sorted. This is stupid."

The coach's face got red, and steam was practically coming from out of his ears. "Sidekick!" he yelled, his sonic powers slightly bleeding through. She promptly sat back down quietly, still not showing any hint of her power to anyone.

Will was still watching her. She had a notion that he knew why she refused, as he leaned over. "Layla, you didn't have to do that, you know."

"Yeah. I know, Will. But this time, I think its okay." She smiled at him, and he smiled back.

Some of the other freshmen were staring at her, but their attention turned back with the other powers on display. Zach was sorted as a sidekick, because a.) his power was glowing, and b.) he wasn't even able to call hit forth. Magenta, who was able to turn into a magenta colored guinea pig, was also sorted into the sidekick class. Their friend Ethan, who could melt, was also put in sidekick. However, because they were all together, they were not upset about the decision.

She dreaded the moment, but Will was eventually called up. It seemed that Will realized when it was his turn, for he turned to Layla and gave a sad smile. In return, she reached a hand on his shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze for support. Once up there, the coach also seemed to be a fan, much like the bus driver that morning. Because Will had trouble finding the words to what he wanted to say, the coach mistook the stuttering as shyness and had the car drop, thinking he had his father's strength. Will was just able to drop flat to the ground underneath the car to avoid being crushed, giving a large sigh in relief. As soon as he was back on his feet, the coach asked if he had his mother's flying ability, and then pressed a button, projecting Will into the air. However, he didn't have his mother's flight, and therefore hit the wall quite hard. Neither of the tests had pretty results on Will, so he was taken to the nurse's office; but not before hearing the word 'sidekick' escape the coach's lips. The coach gave his head a small shake before continuing.

Layla put a hand to her forehead, shaking her head from side to side, worrying about him. However, she turned her attention back towards the front. The kid being called up was a boy with the name of Warren Peace. He was fairly tall, and had a red streak at the front of his black hair. She recognized him as one of the kids she saw at her original bus stop, and watched him ignite his arms on fire and stop the car from crashing on top of him with a few fireballs. He was instantly put into the hero class. As his look swept the 'audience' he noticed her and smirked (obviously for the whole refusal thing), but she quickly looked away and saw another kid start his way up; another hero.

It wasn't that long before the whole 'ceremony' ended and the schedules were passed out. Looking at hers, Layla noticed that all of her classes in the 'sidekick' level were all about how to help the heroes, and none were about what they should do on their own. That really pissed her off, but she decided against taking it to the principal, figuring that it might have even been her idea. Her friends crowded around her, looking at and comparing their schedules. Most of their classes were together, with only a few variations.

She didn't see Will until her first class under Mr. Boy. The man was middle-aged, yet seemed almost untainted. He completely bought into the fact that he was underneath the status of that of a hero. His entire attitude screamed submissive, yet energetic. He had a thin structure and pale skin to his every so slightly frosted hair. By the way he spoke of the class, it was as if he was the walking text book, and was taught the very same words when he attended a school. Will came back into the classroom as Mr. Boy was going over what he hoped to teach throughout the year. He was an eccentric man who loved being knowledgeable on the topic of sidekicks. It was when Will came into the class, the teacher switched to talking about how to change in an insanely short amount of time behind various things such as a screen. Some of the students, like Layla, were able to catch on quickly. However, others, like Will, weren't able to, and came out in a quite weird looking ensamble. Passing a note back and forth, Layla agreed to see him after school and go over any tips that he might find handy.

Next on her schedule, Layla saw that she had lunch. '_Maybe I'll be able to sit in some peace and quiet there with my friends._' She thought to herself walking down the hall.

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In the cafeteria, Layla quickly found her friends Will, Ethan, Magenta, and Zach. This made her happy, knowing that she would at least see them all every other day for a half-hour. Will was already standing in line for lunch when the others found one another. He waved toward them, which they returned, but the looked for a table first. Because lunch was just beginning, they saw many open tables. After setting their things down at one of the tables and signaling to Will where it was, they made their way to the end of one of the lunch lines.

In only a short amount of time, the cafeteria became very loud, and very crowded. Standing in line, the group made faces upon the looks of the food. Zach especially grimaced when the sound of the food hitting the tray, thanks to the lunch line lady, made the disgusting sound of something resembling a 'glorp.' That really did not sound promising. The woman, short and large in structure wore the traditional black hair net and the blue clothes covered with a white apron. As if from some sort of fictional story, she even came complete with the hairy mole and mono brow. 1 However, he stayed quiet, for Magenta was next to him, and he was trying to act the part of the 'boyfriend-material' in front of her. He made it so obvious that he liked her, but she never took any of his hints and remained aloof. Finally breaking the silence, Ethan struck up the courage and asked what the meat of the lunch was. The older woman's reply was a shrug accompanied with a glare at the poor boy.

Layla heard a large clamor break out on the other side of the cafeteria as she was finishing paying for her food. Slightly interested, she craned her neck to get a better look as many students crowded around the area. What she found was that Will somehow ended up in a fight with Warren. Will was just able to avoid the attacks of Warren, who had the advantage of his fire powers. There seemed to be no hope for Will to win the battle. With every swing, he ducked; every fire ball fired at him, he jumped out of the way, just barely. One time, he lucked out and was able to block an incoming fireball with a lunch tray, but a hole was burned through, rendering it useless. Noticing Mr. Boy among the crowd, Layla called out for him to go and get help.

Will seemed to realize he had no hope and dove underneath one of the lunch tables. As Warren jumped atop of it, waiting for Will to reappear on one of the sides, Layla rushed over. Her friends rushed to her side, and together they stood before Warren. Glancing at their feeble, yet serious attempt, his eyes held much amusement.

It was then, in the stress of panic, Will's power seemed to kick in. He lifted the table and threw it, along with Warren, into the wall. As Warren stepped from the rubble with both arms ablaze, the principal barged in with the coach followed by Mr. Boy. Both of them were hauled away, probably to the principal's office or some sort of detention.

Layla sighed, still somewhat confused about it all, but upset that Will was caught up in a fight on his first day of school. She didn't see Will for the rest of the school day. What was left of the group found their stuff all intact at one of the still standing tables. They all sat together and started on eating their food. No one spoke of what happened, or of anything, really. However, they were surrounded by whispering and open conversation. Rumors were in the making, and they knew that there would be nothing that they could do to stop any of it.

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Author's stuff: Well, another chapter is now up. It's kind of shorter, because I wrote this on my lunch time and finished on my break.

Thankyou for reviewing!

Smokeydog: Thank you. I'm really not sure what the pairings are going to be yet. Michiko is pushing warren/layla (as you mentioned), then Kayla found out and is pushing for will/layla, then other co-workers and friends started making random pairing suggestions like zach or lash. To keep on the safe side while I'm deciding, I figure I'm going to have some open possibilities for a while.

RedRomance: Thank you. Yes, I do plan to change it. I plan to set the ball in motion in the next chapter.

Bye-bye for now… 안녕, 再见, さようなら, مع السلام, adeus, arrivederci, au revoir, adios, and Auf Wiedersehen.

Review Please! I will give you mochi… in the mind of course.


	4. And the wheels began to turn

The Thorns of Life

by: me

Disclaimer: Yeah, this is me not owning any of it… nope nope nope.

Summary: I am soooooooooooooooooo sorry for the really late update! Things just kept piling up one after another, until I got sick. Literally. I could barely get out of bed in the morning, even with physical help… but you all aren't reading this to know about my life so on about the chapter.

Sadly, because of the whole fight thing and being sent home early, I wasn't able to get Will in, but I can promise that he'll be a main main part of the next chapter.

Also, while I was sick, I rented and watched the movie… boy did I botch up the beginning… oh well… It would change everything if I were to fix it now. Might as well continue botching it up…

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Walking into her science class, Professor Medulla seemed… interesting. His brain was so big that his head expanded at the top to fit it all in with. Otherwise, he seemed like any other science professor with his white lab coat, his big black rubber gloves, and goggles hanging around his neck. It seemed like he enjoyed being smart, but at the same time, he tried to have an average social life.

Because the room was split up with tables fitting only two people each, Zach immediately took the seat beside Magenta who rolled her eyes. Layla smiled when she saw their little, very little, scene together. Behind them, Ethan and Layla took the table available, wanting to stay close for the class.

"Okay, class. Before I articulate the theorems and science of being a sidekick, I need all of you to demonstrate your power. That way, I will not schedule any experiments which might stimulate an allergic reaction." The professor walked up to the front of the class and picked up a clipboard and a pen before making his way back to the students.

Everyone seemed calm and ready, even Layla. This did not sound like an unreasonable request. She even thought it might help her to show her power somewhere. A rumor was going around that she had no powers, and that was one rumor that she wanted dispelled.

That would have been fine, but the professor continued. "Also, this will make it much easier to pair you all off according to your strength and power, from which pairs I will assign different levels of learning." He then began to walk about the classroom observing and taking notes about what he saw or what was needed to be documented.

That was the end of it being unreasonable to Layla. Although she wanted to end the rumors, she still refused to stand down from her principles. _He just should have stopped with the allergy thing,_ she thought to herself.

Ethan and Magenta both were able to demonstrate their powers, but Zach had trouble.

"Okay, let's see it," the professor said, turning to Zach. In turn, Zach flexed and grinned at the teacher.

"Well, what is it that is your power?"

"But this _is_ my power," Zach exclaimed, then jumped up thinking maybe the teacher merely have a good view.

"What is it?" Medulla looked confused a moment, then annoyed. Having been teaching for quite a while, he figured that Zach was playing some sort of trick on him.

"I'm glowing." Zach motioned toward his body.

"No, you aren't."

"Yes, I am. Maybe if you turn off the lights-"he was interrupted in the middle of turning towards the lights.

"Stop with this joking around. You obviously cannot control your power completely yet." With an exasperated sigh, Zach sat back down and Medulla turned toward Layla.

"Alright, Rosewood. Let's see you show us something more entertaining." He was looking at his clipboard, but then peered over it at her when he received no reaction. "Let me guess… you 'glow' too?"

"No, I think this whole thing is stupid."

"Really, now?"

"Yes, I refuse to be sorted by strength. That's prejudiced."

"Then I cannot allow you to participate in any of my experiments then. You may have some sort of allergic reaction and die from allergies."

"I've already had an allergy test."

"From people without powers, I presume. They, however, look for very different things than we do."

"Then you should be happy to hear it was from the school nurse. Sky High's school nurse. I'm sure that she still would have the results for you to look at."

"I still need to see your power."

"No. You only want to see it so that you could sort us."

"Do you still refuse?"

"Yes."

The professor took out another paper from somewhere on the clipboard and started scribbling on it. "Well then. Here is your detention pass. See me after class."

"Detention!" She exclaimed, outraged.

"Shall I give you two?"

With her friends gaping at her, she picked up her bag, took the pass, and left.

Seeing how she was once talking to them, Medulla talked to the people who were sitting in the area around Layla's. "Does she even have a power?" He tried to be tactful and ask quietly, but his voice carried, and caused others to hear. Whispers immediately broke out.

"She _does_ have a power!" Magenta snapped at the class, eyes flaring.

"Yeah," Zack took Magenta's side quickly. "And stop with all the whispering. She could definitely win in a fight against all of you together with her power!"

"Then what is it," someone challenged, probably a friend of Penny or Gwen's.

"If she wanted _you_ to know, she would have shown you it. But I can tell you it's a hell of a lot better than yours… all you can do is turn on and off lights in a room!" The girl blushed and looked down.

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Being let into the detention room, Layla was practically blinded with how white the room was. Bright white walls, floor, and even ceiling seemed to have lights inside of them. A quite surprising number of people were in there already. She recognized Lash, Warren, and the guy from her original bus stop that morning. Some of the room's occupants took notice of her before returning to whatever they were doing as she moved toward her seat next to the kid from the bus stop.

The sheer boredom of being there sunk in quite quickly. Warren was silently snapping his fingers creating small flames, which were quickly dissipated; Lash was staring off into space, occasionally writing something down on what looked like plans; and the other one was just staring at her, as if he failed all attempts of attention from the other kids in the room. Layla tried to busy herself and ignore the kid next to her by pulling a journal from her bag and beginning to write.

"Hey," he said, obviously trying to sound smooth. "I'm Larry." (lol. couldn't help but use the kid on the bus' name)

Layla didn't even bother trying to hide the action of rolling her eyes, '_Talk about change in personality from this morning…_'. She scooted away from him, creating some more distance.

He didn't seem to take the hint. After a moment of silence, he tried again. "Okay, mystery woman, your powers must come from Aphrodite, for you have control of my heart."

"Sorry, not interested," Layla, replied.

Still being the idiot, he continued. "I'm a hero… and a junior… I can show you a whole new world." He ran his fingers through his hair.

"I'm still not interested. Don't bother wasting your breath."

"But I'm a hero…" he seemed shocked to be rejected.

"What difference does that make?" she asked, eyes flaring.

"W…wh-what difference…!" he sputtered, now more (if that were possible) shocked and bordering on psychotic. The border was jumped across. "What the hell do you mean!"

By now, the other occupants seemed somewhat curious. Since it was a detention room, everyone's powers were curbed quite a bit, but it was still possible to use them. They were all watching, most of them with a childish delight at the possibility of a fight breaking out. However, some of them seemed calmer and more curious about the outcome than the prospect of blood.

"I really don't care what class you're in. I said I'm not interested. Just get over it."

"What the-No one's rejected me," he growled. His powers reared its demonic face as his nails grew out into claws and his teeth to fangs.

_'Stupid wolf-boy,'_ Layla thought to herself. However, she couldn't stop herself from laughing as a flashback to the old movie "Teen Wolf" came to her head. She saw the movie forever ago it seemed, with Will on some random weekend when they were bored. They spent most the whole movie laughing their heads off together.

Back to reality, however… She shocked faces around her. Here she was, with a very angry, not to mention unstable, dangerous guy standing before her. Even with the room's limitations, he was still somehow able to use his powers to what seemed to be completely. And of all things she could have done… she had laughed at him. ( . sometimes I do that… laugh at the wrong time…) The audience thought her to be either very confident or just plain stupid. Slightly scared that no one seemed likely to help, she willed her face emotionless, causing her appearance to be calm and calculating, hiding the raging war going on in her mind.

'_Holy crap! I might die today! I don't want to die! If I use my powers, I might win… or at least have a chance…_'

While she was lost in her thoughts, Larry made the first move, again. Swinging his arm out, he took a swipe. His claws grazed the skin of her cheek and cut into her skin. Instantly, heads turned to watch what was unfolding in the room.

As he raised his arm for a second swing, it was caught in mid air by an overstretched arm wrapped around the wrist. Lash's arm retracted, pulling Larry away closer to him. Warren, whose seat was next to Lash's, was slightly glaring with a hint of steam coming from his right hand. (I told you all, I don't know pairings, so I'm leaving open possibilities for _all_ candidates)

"If this is all to be expected from next year's seniors, I think I might stay behind and teach you all a thing or two," he said, watching Layla sitting at her desk.

Caught up in the fact that she didn't get a hit in, now that she's decided to use her powers, she shot Lash a glare which he caught.

Still pissed off, Larry sat back down in his seat. Feeling guilty about the glare, Layla turned and mouthed a thanks in Lash's general direction.

Noticing that their time in detention was almost up, some of the students began picking up their things and packing them away. One of the students in the back of the room had built a tower from her deck of cards. As she was about to take it down, the kid next to her practically yelled for her to wait. Apparently, he wanted a picture of it; he pulled out a camera and asked if she wanted a copy.

Layla did not want to walk around with scratches on her face in the least, so she put a very, very, very small and unnoticable seed in the cut and it ran its course before dying and letting its healing aspects spread in her. It only took a few moments, and was gone before others noticed. The room was let out, as to the fact that the class time was over. Walking out of the detention room back into the non-blinding halls of the school, the absence of the scratches did not escape the notice of Lash.

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"You do realize that you could have been placed in hero class, I assume?" Professor Medulla asked, standing before Layla in a room full of plants. Some of the plants were calm and gentle, while others seemed to pose a serious threat if necessary.

"I know…" Layla replied, tired of the day and ready to go home.

"Then why aren't you?" He seemed puzzled. It seems that he's been under the influence that heroes are just 'better' than any others.

"I've already told you in class."

"Oh…."

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Somewhere far away, in a dark room, two figures could be made out.

"What is it that you want? Can't you see I'm busy planning?" A voice rumbled, clearly irritated.

The second figure seemed almost hesitant to approach, but continued forward anyway. "I have something for you," the voice, revealing the speaker to be none other than Lash, started.

"Well, what is it?" The shadowed figure turned his way fully, standing over him.

"I found someone who would interest you. You may find this one to be useful," Lash said.

"If you are talking about Stronghold, I'm already working on him," the speaker said in a bored and slightly annoyed tone.

"No, it's not Stronghold. This one is his friend, the girl." Lash smirked at the figure's surprised reaction.

"I didn't notice anything special about her," it started, now curious. "Tell me more…"

Author's stuff: I blame the bad quality of this chapter on my being sick when I wrote it. Okay, once again, I'm sorry for the late update. It shouldn't take nearly this long for the next update, now that I finally have medicine and it is working. Also, Michiko took a while 'editing' this, which I had to also fix. … Michiko, what are you doing? Put down the pitchfork. Aaaahhh! Runs away screaming.

Bye-bye for now… 안녕, 再见, さようなら, مع السلام, adeus, arrivederci, au revoir, adios, and Auf Wiedersehen

Please review.


	5. We interrupt this program

The Thorns of Life

by: my lonesome self

**Sadly not a chapter…**

I am SOOOOOOOO sorry!!!! A lot has been going on in my life right now… and I'm sure you all don't really want to hear about that. No, of course not, you want the story (can't blame you). So, all I shall say upon the topic is that it involved an enraged editor, a fight, a shredder, a few matches, many rolls of duct tape, and a couple of phone calls.

I just want to assure everyone that I WILL continue with this, and I'm trying to finish up the last touches of the next chapter before I post it tomorrow.

In the meantime, I humbly bow down before you all in apology. I mean, really now.

Seeing as how chapters on this site are not allowed to be author notes exclusively, I have decided to answer some questions that are possible running through your head from this story:

**LAYLA**- Yes, I do realize that she is acting out of character. That was intentional. I liked the idea of her character, but I found that I thought they could have done more with her. A LOT more. So in this story (in which she's obviously starring), she has a history, present, and future. Some of the clues in the beginning chapter will come back later and it will all come out.

**LARRY**- I thank you for pointing out that he was a little nerd rock boy. Nothing against nerds, seeing as I am a nerd, but he's a nerd. However, please keep in mind that I rarely actually watch the movie. I've only seen it a grand total of two times ever. I had forgotten about the rock thing, and gave him "wolfish" powers. As for the drastic personality change, I credit that to peer pressure… yeah… that's it. Hmm… actually, that sounds reasonable. I think I might be able to work that in for later references. (big grin) thank you for indirectly giving me a new idea!

**MOVIE PLOT LINE**- In complete truth, I'm not entirely sure how to answer that, but I'll try. When I had originally started this story, I had hoped to follow the movie plot line. However, I then decided to make a few changes, leading to me coming up with an original plot (don't worry, it's coming out… just veeeeeeeeeeery slowly…and hidden by the movie…). For the moment, I'm just lazy however, and decided to follow the movie for as long as I can, not wanting to have to do any real work. .

**POLL**?!

Umm… so I guess you vote for the pairing you want then???? Hmmm, might as well have fun with the choices. :P  
results so far…

Will: 1  
Warren: 3  
Lash: 1  
Zack: 0  
Ethan: 0  
None: 0  
Write-in: 0

Don't like it? Like it? REVIEW AND VOTE!!!!!!! If enough people vote to where I feel bad for the losers, I'll post extra ending chapter(s) with alternate endings for those.


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